Studio G Halloween stamps and inks have been shipped to everyone who ordered them...I'm waiting for the Holiday stamps and inks to arrive! They should be here any day!
That's right, the Gazelles will be shipping starting this week! This wonderful cutter has 500 grams of cutting force and will cut a full 12 inches wide! Don't miss out, if you want one, order it now!
Nicole
Mara
Angela
This banner turned out to be HUGE! I had a hard time getting a good photo of the entire thing. Hope you can see enough to get a good idea! Each panel is roughly 4x5 inches and they are tied together with bits of ric-rac. REALLY easy project! Hand piece a cake or cupcake to separate the words, and you're done! If you're interested in complete instructions, feel free to PM me via the message board (Suzuyuki).
Enjoy the party! And Happy Birthday, Martha!
When: Friday the 18th-Sunday the 20th
Where: the message board, gallery, blog, and chat room
Chats and classes:
1. Mara: 6-7pm PST, LIVE Bingo (words due Friday at noon)
2. class with Martha, TBA
3. Sara: Saturday 2pm EST
Challenges:
1. Beth: layout challenge (details on mb)
2. Sara: whip up a fun birthday treat and share the recipe with us
3. Mara: create a piece of “cake”- template will be available
4. Friday Fresh Sketch: complete this week’s sketch during the crop
5. We Challenge You: complete Zoa’s layout challenge (7/15-7/31) during the crop
6. Zoa: layout challenge using one of three recipes (details on mb)
Blog: Check out the blog Friday morning for a fun birthday banner idea.
**Participate in challenges and chats to earn points toward Birthday Bucks! (Your points during the crop will be added to points earned during the 5 Week Contest…more details to come!)
5 pts. for completion of a challenge
10 pts. for being the first to complete a challenge
15 pts. for being picked by the host as the “winner”/win a chat game
Welcome to the Great Outdoors! Come on in, kick up your feet. The June card kit is a super fun way to bring your card making to a different level. Forget the traditional thinking of you's and thank you cards....think outside the box! Here are a few examples of some cool cards you can make with your Great Outdoors card kit.
Please join us for a celebration and online crop the weekend of July 18-20.
Prizes, games, classes, challenges, and plenty of chat time!
*Details and chat schedule to come!
You know those clothes pins that you received in your May kit? I decided not to alter them because I'm planning on buying tons more to keep my supplies organized and I want them to all match. I used them as clips to hold my journaling cards and stuff. The hold everything together in my card basket.
I also decided to use them to clip chunks of photos, ribbons strips, ephemera and tags together that I'm planning on using in a project. That way everything sticks together and is all available for me when I embark on a new adventure. I feel so organized with this basket!
For my last Hope Chest altered project, I decided to use these empty ribbon spools.
I covered them with contrasting paper, added a Heidi Swapp iron-on letter.
Added wings (stamp is Heidi Swapp) that I originally planned to use with another project and a button from All Dressed Up.
On the spool part, I glued a strip of paper with a few quotes that I found inspirational. I stapled a bit of ric-rac on the end so that it would stay shut.
This is what it looks like when it is unwound.
I call this a Measure of Wisdom and made one for my two oldest girls. I think that they would be great as a different birthday or graduation card too. The possibilities are endless. Now junk is no longer quite so junky!
Finally, it is my turn to share my Hope Chest mini-album. I did this using pictures from my son's first trip to the fire station. It was a very big day, to say the least!
I inked the edges of the Theresa Collins journal papers, punched holes and attached them with small rings.
In order to reinforce my holes, I punched small circles using contrasting pattern paper and adhered them to the most vulnerable spots.
Here's where I placed my journaling. You can see that I made my picture a bit askew. This was the best way to fit the most important parts (his body and the steering wheel) on that small paper. If I placed the photo straight, I would have punched the hole on his face.
On the last page, I used some black fuzzy pipe cleaners as photo corners. It is hard to see the texture here, but I just stapled them on and it gives a bit of dimension.
I love the masculine nature of this album!
In the Cherry Arte His and Hers paper line, there are a couple sheets that are specifically tailored towards one gender or the other. Don't let this discourage you from using them! I want to show you a project I did using the BOY paper below on a GIRL layout.
I just love the way this turned out! So next time you are checking out your favorite line, don't be deterred by gender-specific paper. Branch out and take a chance! You might be pleasantly surprised.
And here's the finished project. Its definitely a "mini" in size but it contains some great things about my life right now. I didn't make it too fancy either, just raw and in the moment.
Check back on Saturday for one last project using the May kit!
I wanted to try a couple things with watercolor...and made a LOT of mistakes. Watercolor is definitely something you cannot actually mess up! Really. Just go with the flow and channel that kindergarten energy!
The layout is done with Prima IOD Paintables. I really liked this one with the buildings and decided they were perfect for a child-like layout of my son reading a book at a local bookstore. Painting is so much fun! Think paint-by-numbers and just go for it! Use the whole sheet or cut out the elements you want and use them to create a scene.
The second watercolor technique/idea I tried was a take off of a technique that Emily Falconbridge shared in a recent article. I layered a little patterned paper towel (mine has tiny dots in a diamond pattern) over a watercolor paper heart and gently (VERY gently) painted a yummy color over the top. Be sure your paint isn't too wet or too dry- too wet makes the paper towel dissolve and too dry can tear it. This technique gives a little texture to an embellishment. Remind me to get some "cool" paper towels next time! I have ideas...
As you know, every Itty Bitty Scrap Shack kit comes with a unique item to alter. May's kit contains clothes pins! When I first got the kit, I was stumped at what to do with them....and then a few days later it hit me....POW! I knew I needed to use them on an altered project.
I decided to make a fun frame using Tim Holtz grungeboard, the Cherry Arte paper from the kit, and the clothes pins. This frame would be perfect for a young boys room! I used Brilliance White Pigment Ink on the Grungeboard skull, then chalked the edges and sanded the top to give it a "dirty" look. The clothes pins came apart fairly easily so I could paint all sides. I love that the pirate-y theme matches well with the clothes pins. I used Modge Podge to adhere the Cherry Arte paper, then sanded the sides and inked them.
Here's a close up of the skull.
Check back tomorrow for another fun idea on using your journaling spots in a new way!
I wanted to share a couple simple paint techniques that are "new" to me...but not new to the world. Nothing earth shattering, but totally FUN!
The first is layering paint over a textured background to bring out the texture. I've been wanting to do something like Ali Edwards ever since Tiffany sent me the paint for TOTW. I used some KI lace cardstock with numbers and some Heidi Swapp paint. I didn't worry too much about the colors matching and just went for it.
Adhere your lace cardstock to your background (in this case, a 6x6 piece of chipboard to be used as an album cover). Paint over the top of both layers until you have achieved your desired color/thickness. I used black cardstock and "icee" paint, so it gives my album a look of old copper. Love accidents like that!
The second technique to stamping with paint to create a background. I love polka dots SO much and decided to use some bubble wrap (small bubbles) as a stamp. I simply brushed the paint onto the wrap, turned it over, and stamped onto my paper. Ta da! You have homemade patterned paper. :) You can use alpha stamps, floral designs, corrugated cardboard (for stripes), etc. This is one paint technique that can't get old.
*ETA: Having some trouble with blogger...hoping to get more "step by step" photos posted! It's all rather self-explanatory, so look for the photos in the mb later today in case blogger never "gets it". :)
I am just in love {swoon} with May's Itty Bitty Kit, Hope Chest! Featuring papers from the His and Hers line of Cherry Arte, I wanted to get full use out of this paper line...and you will too! Look at what Hope Chest has to offer...
Because I loved all of the double sided paper in this line, I decided I just had to scrap on BOTH sides of the paper. Yep, BOTH sides! This works best when you'll be using page protectors in your albums to keep any dimensional embellishments secure.
The geometrical shapes of the Cherry Arte paper reminded me of the fashions of my childhood. I immediately pulled out some photos from that time and put this fun layout together. Its a great way to capture my memories of growing up! On the Homemade Cake layout, I cut around the edges of the Teresa Collins journal spot to show off the scallopped edge. The eyelets lend themselves perfectly to the geometric paper and the scallops. And of course, the custom designed circle accents tops off the layout!
And finally, another "throw-back" layout. Here, I matched the swirls of the Cherry Arte paper to the swirls in the Hambly overlay. I added Stickles to the paper swirls to make them "pop".
I'll have some more fun projects to share with you using the kit later this week. Don't forget to stop by the shop to get your Hope Chest kit today!
There are SO many ways to use paint in your paper crafting projects! There are a few basic "techniques" that most of us have tried a few that are a little more geared to those that crave the "artsy" feel in their pages and albums. I decided to do a little of both.
The first project is a simple canvas painted with Tim Holtz crackle paint. LOVE that stuff! Simply coat the canvas with a medium coat of paint for tiny all-over cracks and a (very) thick coat for the larger cracks. I went with a little of both (mostly large!) as I wanted some of the white canvas to show through. Paint the chipboard pieces in a contrasting color using acrylic paint. I chose white as I'm a bit obsessed with Stickles and thought the white would be a nice "base" color for my glitter! Add a ribbon and you're done.
Stay tuned for more "artsy" ways to use your paint as well as a little water color fun!
